Rise Up

Jade looked out of the window of the airplane with mild excitement. She was still salty about having to leave behind her friends that she has known forever to start over in a foreign place. Jade's stomach turned at the thought of trying to fit in and make new friends. She felt her mother's hand make contact with hers. She looked up at her mother, and she smiled at her reassuringly. Jade appreciated the gesture even though she was still vexed with her mother about making her leave.  Jade perked up a little when the pilot said that they had arrived at the airport. They had been on the plane from New York for hours, and she only got up to stretch her legs once. Not to mention, she was hungry and tired.  When it was finally time to exit the plane, Jade stood up and stretched her arms. She grabbed her Fendi duffle bag and followed her mom off of the airplane. Jade sighed when the sunlight warmed her alabaster skin. "Look there's our driver," her mom said, pointing to a man in a black suit holding a signed that read, Sonya and Jade McAlister. Jade felt lucky that they didn't have to wait for a cab or an uber. She wanted to see their new house already and start planning what she would wear for school, and what activities she would be doing. She played just about every sport offered at her old school, and she participated in twice as many clubs.  Jade didn't like to think of herself as an overachiever, though. She just wanted to make the most of high school and what it had to offer. Plus all the sports and extracurricular activities coupled with her grades would get her into any school she chose to attend.  "Your bag, ma'am," the driver said as her and her mom approached the shiny, black town car waiting for them.  "Thank you, sir, but I can manage," she said politely as she slid into the back seat of the car after her mother.  The man nodded his head before getting in the front seat. Jade looked out of the window with a wide smile as she watched everything curiously. Her previous disinterest was replaced with excitement as she wondered where her peers hung out, and what they did for fun.  Back in New York, Jade attended some high school parties, went to the movies, and had slumber parties when she wasn't practicing or playing in a game.  "What's the name of the high school?" Jade asked her mom as she continued sightseeing.  "Hmm?" Sonya replied, barely taking her eyes off of her phone. Sonya had a big case that she had to prepare for, not to mention moving. She felt stressed, but she wouldn't show it for Jade's sake.  If Jade felt like Sonya was stressed or nervous about the move, she would use that as a reason why they should've stayed in New York. They had that argument plenty of times after Sonya had broke the news to Jade.  Jade didn't repeat herself to Sonya. Of course, she would be working already, Jade thought. She admired her mom for being a tough defense attorney, but she envied the job because it took the majority of her mother's time and attention. She didn't expect anything to change about that part of her life once moving to Arizona. Her eyebrows met in the center of her forehead when they passed a sign that read, Welcome to Glendale. "I thought you said we were moving to Phoenix," Jade asked. "Glendale isn't that far from Phoenix. What's the difference?" Her mom stated dryly.  "Nothing, I guess," she replied as she slumped back against the seat. She was tired of sitting down. She wanted to badly to see the house her mother had described. She wanted to fix her room up, and more importantly, she wanted to eat.  Her stomach growled right on cue. Minutes later the town car pulled into the driveway of a two-story white house with a rusty colored roof. The house had a small palm tree in the yard with a few bushes and a much larger tree.  The car stopped, and Jade was the first to hop out. She skipped to the door, sighing with relief when she isn't met with resistance while turning the door knob. She walked into the living room and found herself pleasantly surprised at how homey it looked.  It was decorated with cream, burnt orange, tan, and a pretty teal. "You like it?" She heard from behind her.  She nodded her head like a bobblehead toy as her eyes eagerly danced around the living room. "I'm glad you like it, but you can go check out your room, now. I know you're anxious to see it." Sonya didn't have to tell her daughter twice. Jade practically sprinted up the stairs. She halted at the very top step when she realized that there was another living room upstairs, equipped with a sofa, two large,  white bean bags, and a large flat screen. She got a little suspicious when she realized that the sofa was her favorite color, lavender. She walked to one of the two doors and opened it. I wasn't her room. It was a bathroom decorated in lavender and white, making Jade even more excited to see her room.  She walked out of the bathroom and walked to the door a little further down. She took a deep breath and entered the room. Jade stood in the doorway of the room with her mouth open. Much like the bathroom, the room was decorated with lavender and white, but they even have silver decor in the room.  "Surprise!" Her mom yelled behind her, making her clutch her chest. "I made sure the decorators put their blood, sweat, and tears into making sure this room was perfect. You deserve it." "Is this your way of bribing me?" "Is it working?" Her mom replied, only half-joking. It was a bribe of sorts. She always tried to make up not being there for Jade with things like this. Jade knew of her mom's intentions, though. She wasn't blind.  "It definitely worked," Jade said as she walked further into the room, touching everything lightly like too much pressure would damage some things. "Well, I have some work to do. I'll let you get settled," Sonya said, before walking out of the room. As soon as the door closed, Jade dived on her bed, squealing like a five-year-old. She looked up at the white canopy draping over the bed deep in thought.  Her previous reservations about her new school and the new house seemed silly to her now, but she couldn't shake the nervousness that overcame her when she thought about it.  However, instead of dwelling on it, she decided to take a bath. She had been on a plane for hours, and she was tired. Luckily, they didn't need to unpack. Everything was unpacked for them by a housekeeper, no doubt.  Jade walked into her large closet and found something comfortable to sleep in. She left out of her room to go to the bathroom. Her mother's voice could be heard from downstairs. She was talking to someone, but Jade couldn't be bothered with it.  "Jade," Sonya called from down the stairs. Jade huffed, but nonetheless, she made a detour to the stairs. She shuffled down the stairs, mumbling to herself about disturbance and interruptions. "Mom, can it wait," she complained. "I was just going to go shower." Jade stepped off of the last step and finally noticed the people standing in the living room near her mom. She looked at her mom, then back at the people completely confused.  "Honey, these are our neighbors, the Wilsons," Sonya announces awkwardly. She felt the same way as her daughter. She would rather people not show up at her house unannounced, but she's not rude, so she invited them in.  "Hi, I'm Jade," Jade introduced herself with a timid wave.  "Oh my god, your daughter is so beautiful," the woman of the family said dramatically. "Isn't she beautiful, Andy," she asked the boy standing in the middle of her and her husband. Andy nodded awkwardly. He did think Jade was beautiful, but he hated being dragged to a new neighbor's house. He knew his mom's sole reason for doing this was to be nosy. "Well, it was nice meeting you all, but it's getting late. It's Jade's first day of school tomorrow, and I have a lot of work to get done," Sonya said with a pleasant smile, hoping that her neighbors got the hint.  "Oh, yeah. Well, we just wanted to greet you and welcome you to Glendale. Jade, maybe you can ride with Andy to school tomorrow. Maybe he can show you around," the mom suggested, making Andy bite back a sigh.  "Sure, that would be fine," Jade said. Her car is parked in the garage, but she didn't want to get lost and be late to school on her first day. "I'll be here by 7:30," Andy informed Jade. She nodded her head before bidding the Wilson family goodbye. She headed straight for the bathroom, feeling more tired than ever.  She undressed and hopped in the shower. She turned the knobs to the way she wanted it and the warm water cascaded over her red hair and creamy skin, making her relax instantly. Jade wanted the shower to last forever, but the water eventually got cold.  She got out of the shower and dried herself off. She slid on her underwear and pajamas. She shuffled to her room, officially drained from the day. She shut off her light and laid on the bed, unable to stop her mind from wondering about the school.  "Everything will be okay," she mumbled before turning over and allowing sleepiness to take over.